Benesch Welcomes Noted White Collar Pro Marisa Darden to Lead Growing Practice

Benesch has added Marisa Darden as a partner in its Cleveland office and chair of its White Collar practice. A former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Marisa is an accomplished trial lawyer who advises companies and individuals in investigations and criminal matters brought by law enforcement and regulatory agencies. She has experience handling a range of matters, including allegations of wire and mail fraud and potential violations of state and federal law, such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. 

“Marisa is the ideal person to take on the leadership of our work in white collar, government investigations and regulatory compliance matters as we focus on enhancing our capabilities in this area nationwide,” said Benesch Firmwide Managing Partner Gregg A. Eisenberg. “She has the depth of experience needed to handle the most urgent, complex and high-profile matters facing our clients today, as well as a real passion for recruiting and developing the next generation of talent to serve clients over the long term.”

Most recently a partner in a prominent international law firm, earlier in her career, Marisa spent more than three years with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in New York, followed by almost five years with the Department of Justice as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Cleveland. Named last year to Crain’s Cleveland Business’ prestigious “Women of Note” list, she is also an adjunct professor at Case Western Reserve School of Law who devotes herself to mentoring younger attorneys and maintaining a robust pro bono practice.

“I was drawn to Benesch by the commitment they’ve shown to recruiting, developing and retaining top-tier talent. I’m inspired by the nationwide growth of the firm’s commercial litigation practice, which is taking on bet-the-company matters across multiple markets and industries,” said Darden. “I’m excited to lead the White Collar team on a similar trajectory.”

In August, Benesch welcomed well-known litigator Shaneeda Jaffer to its San Francisco office. She focuses her practice on defending individuals and corporations against a host of white-collar allegations, including insider trading, federal securities fraud, stock options backdating, environmental crimes, corporate bribery and antitrust violations. She also has deep experience conducting internal investigations for companies, municipalities and public agencies, and handling civil litigation.

Darden and Jaffer join partners Mark Silberman, Christopher Grohman and Johanes Maliza in spearheading Benesch’s white collar work.

Darden holds a J.D. from Duke University School of Law. She attended the University of Michigan and the London School of Economics as an undergraduate.